The Zoal Moons
by ErikaHK
Summary: The team’s mission fails miserably as they crash land on an apparently desert moon. Whumping, team fic. Rated T for violence.
1. Chapter 1 Crash Landing

**THE ZOAL MOONS  
**_By ErikaHK_

Summary: The team's mission fails miserably as they crash land on an apparently desert moon. Whumping, team fic. Rated T.

Disclaimer: Stargate and all its related characters are property of MGM Television Entertainment. No infringement of rights is meant.

_ETA:_

_A/N: I'm going through my fics again. Don't worry, I didn't not change the plot or anything, it's just that I'm now A LOT better in English and I performed corrections. Grammar and spelling, the characterizations were also a bit off in some parts and I've discovered that my POVs and verb tenses were all over the place with some parts a little confusing, so I changed those too. Re-reading this made happily realize how much I've learned in one year. :) Thanks for everyone that had been kind on the reviews, because my writing sucked. _

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_**Chapter 1 – Crash Landing**_

"Why are they still firing at us?" McKay's voice came in a high pitch while he was thrown into his seat right behind Sheppard's.

"The cloak is down!" Sheppard said as he concentrated in keeping the jumper from being shot.

The HUD came up and both men looked at it. "Damn!"

"What?" Ronon sounded almost calm with the whole situation wasn't for his worried expression watching over Teyla, holding her still on the seat.

"Energy readings! They are powering up the weapons!" McKay said, his voice almost disappearing.

Sheppard continued with the evasive maneuvers making the puddle jumper fly randomly across the sky of the moon.

That mission wasn't exactly in their definition of a success. Being mistaken by rebels on a planet ruled by an oppressive government with advanced defense weapons after only twenty minutes of landing was a true record, even for John Sheppard. _Why does this always happen to me?_ The other teams got into trouble of course, but John Sheppard was always the one to hold the records. Always the same speech came from both him and Elizabeth: in the end he always promised to be more careful next time, but every time somehting would happen. Not that it was really his fault. Problems seemed to follow him everywhere he went, especially in the Pegasus Galaxy.

They were reaching the orbit. The blue sky slowly turned darker and punctual lights started to fill in the view. Blue energy pulses came from the surface of the moon as the team escaped. The jumper shook violently with the impact of another blast making sparks fly from the back compartment of the ship. The jumper continued to shake as the violent maneuvers were executed.

"What the hell happened to the inertial dampeners?" McKay hissed as he turned to the console beside him. "Where are so screwed!" he said in his usual doom voice.

When the lights inside the jumper blinked and the consoles darkened for a moment John wondered if this could get any worse.

"Rodney, what _exactly_ does screwed means?" he asked.

Throught the corner of his eye, John saw Rodney quickly turn his attention to the main console, pressing the first glyph of the Atlantis address. The stargate remained dark. He pressed the remaining glyphs and ordered the activation of the gate, but still got nothing.

"Nonononononono… this can't be happening!" he shouted. "We are stuck here!" he said defeated.

"Are you saying that we cannot dial home?" Teyla asked urgently.

John hated this situation. Still piloting and unable to look at the Athosian, he could imagine her wearing a pair of eyes filled with pain and a jacket stained with blood, her bloodied hand still pressed against her other arm. It had been avoidable.

They reached a high orbit above the moon, just out of range of the planetary defenses, but John was still having problems flying the ship. The controls blinked once more.

"Either we get back home or we'll need to land this somewhere." He spoke in a low voice keeping all his concentration in keeping the ship together. "Rodney, try to find a suitable moon for us."

"A suitable moon?" The scientist waved his hands in a full semi circle. "There are dozens of moons here! How can we possibly find one-" Rodney's fast paced speech was interrupted by an angry colonel.

"Rodney!" Sheppard shouted. "In case you forgot, we are heading strait for a power failure here. I need to land this _now_!"

His point was made when more sparks and a short circuit were heard from the back.

Agreeing fast, Rodney looked down to the console pressing a few commands. He murmured something when it started to fail again.

"Head over there!" he spoke abruptly pointing to the left of the window.

The puddle jumper turned until it was facing a moon close to their position. It looked pretty much like any ordinary moon: rocky and wild.

"There."

"You want us to go there?"

The HUD showed no information on the moon, except that it had a breathable atmosphere.

"You wanted a place, that's the only one here." McKay was sunken in his seat, arms crossed and sulking. "We'll be fine until rescue come for us; there are no life signs there."

As they approached the moon, the difficulty of keeping the jumper aligned increased and the power failures became more frequent. Rodney had headed for the cargo hold in an attempt to give them more time before there were completely out of time, but his _ow… what a mess…_ hadn't been very encouraging.

"I'll try to give you the inertial dampeners, if we're going to crash, that's the most vital system to keep us from certain death." Rodney informed from the back.

The jumper gave another quiver. John grabbed the controls with all his might, trying to squeeze a last feat before everything went black as they shook violently inside.

**…**

* * *

TBC…


	2. Chapter 2 Shivering Night

_A/N: Sorry about the delay, my computer is not working. I lost a chapter of my fic and had to rewrite it. Thanks for the reviews, they kept me writing when the anger could have taken the best of me._

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**_Chapter 2 – Shivering Night_**

A throbbing head. That was the first thing Rodney felt coming back to consciousness. Slowly, he began felling the pain on other parts of his body too. He opened his eyes slowly, but still couldn't see anything. He blinked a few times to make sure that his eyes were really opened. He waited a moment until he adjusted to the very dim light as he remembered the last moments before darkness came.

They had crash landed on a moon.

His back and arm were hurting and he considered how much it would take to keep his back from giving up. He then discovered that his body was flat on the floor. Rodney turned his body to lie on his back and sat on the floor of the jumper. He run his hand through his head and flinched when it reached a cut. He felt blood on his hand. _Oh God, I'm bleeding!_ The Canadian panicked for a moment searching his vest for a light. He took it out illuminating the ship. He saw Teyla resting on the floor of the cockpit and Ronon getting up from beside her.

"You okay, Mckay?" Ronon asked looking at the scared scientist.

"We crashed on a desert moon, my head hurts and I'm bleeding, so no, I'm _not_ okay!" he said, almost whimpering.

"Suck it up, Rodney," Sheppard said peeking from his seat.

Ronon, on the other hand, ignored him completely, actually giving a faint smile, and turned to look over Teyla. Rodney decided to follow him, remembering her previous condition.

"Teyla?" the Satedan whispered gently, touching her shoulder. He repeated the call shaking her softly when she didn't respond. "Teyla."

There was a brief moan and after a short time she started opening her eyes. Ronon helped her to sit up. Rodney saw she was still bleeding. He got up looking for the first aid kit and handed it to Ronon. The big man too the kit and Rodney retreated to the back of the ship to examine the damage.

He rubbed his aching arm, and made grunting sounds as he checked each system.

"So… can you fix it?" Rodney heard the innocent tone on Sheppard's voice.

"The whole power grid is down. I don't have any replacements for the fried components!" Rodney shouted waving his hand around. He frowed as the abrupt movement reminded him of the head injury.

"But you can fix it, right?"

"Weren't you listening? This is beyond my amazing repair skills!"

"You'll think of something." Sheppard tilted his head as he spoke and turned, heading for the cockpit.

**...**

"How are you, Teyla?" John asked her leaning over her side.

The Athosian woman nodded trying to look okay, but the colonel saw the pain behind her eyes. She had hit her head when she fell from the seat, not to mention the bleeding.

"I will be fine, John." She tried a faint smile.

John pursed lips, concerned. They still had twenty four hours before Atlantis started looking for them. Fortunately the moon was close enough from the space gate for them to detect their transmitter signals. But they would have to hang on for one day.

"How are you, colonel?" Teyla asked him in return.

"I'm okay," he said sitting on the pilot's seat with a hand on the back of his neck.

The affirmation was true enough, from all four he was the only one without a bump on the head. But he still had a sore neck from the impact.

John stared outside for a few moments, probing their surroundings. They were on a small plateau surrounded by peaks and cliffs, but he could not distinguish the extend of the geography because of the darkness. The bottom part of the window was covered in dirt that came from the crash and there was a ring around the small crater the puddle jumper had formed falling from the sky.

It was windy outside and a few minutes later the ring shapes were now almost gone. The windshield was covered with even more dirt, reaching its lower half. It was cold, and the temperature inside the jumper had decreased a few degrees since they crashed. They would need life support if they were to survive the night. He looked back and saw Rodney looking over several components, running from on side to another.

"Is there any chance we could have life support before the temperature reaches below zero?" he asked.

"The power distribution system is damaged. There isn't enough power reaching any kind of system in the ship. I'm working as best as I can, but we are not going to make it out here." Rodney said still moving around with a frown on his face.

"Look, we just need to make it until the others come for us." John tried to sound calm and in control.

"Yesyesyes… I'm working, but I'm just saying that you'd better be prepared for an unpleasantly cold night."

**…**

Unpleasantly cold. Those were the words. Somehow that felt like an understatement. They were all four locked in the cargo hold of the jumper, separated from the cockpit, to keep the warmth. Sitting side by side, hugging their knees, shivering, wrapped in the blankets found under the rear seats, so close to one another, that they almost looked like one single shuddering body, all rubbing themselves, trying to stay away from hypothermia.

Rodney was able to give them the CO2 recycling, on a minimum output, but it was better than opening the rear hatch to let the freezing O2 get in. Now he was trying to give them a glimpse of life support working on the parts that were now under his knees with the tools over his lap. The scientist had stopped complaining about the difficulty of fixing delicate parts wile shaking, freezing and with a gash to his head, probably because he was too cold to do so and a silent Rodney is not a good sign.

John was beginning to worry about Teyla too, who also fighting against a bullet wound. She was placed in the middle of Ronon and Rodney and the Satedan had his arms around her keeping her as close to them as possible. They had given her painkillers and antibiotics, and those made her sleepy. Her head rested over Rodney's shoulder and he just looked at her with a worried face, still making clear to Ronon with a grimace that this was distracting his work. The big man decided to let Teyla rest her head on his shoulder instead. John didn't know if this was a good idea, but there wasn't much they could do about it.

John's job was to hold the light over Rodney's work, and wasn't easy to keep the light on the right direction with hands that wouldn't stop shaking. And now he was bored. He had tried to guess what his friend was doing, but then decided to see different shapes in the cold smoke coming from his mouth and nostrils. He had his head against the wall behind him trying to see more shapes on the roof of the jumper. He had a few moments of distraction that didn't last long.

His fingers soon got rigid and numb. He changed the hand holding the lamp, but his left hand wasn't much better. He kept his right hand close to his mouth, blowing hot air into it. As soon as a hand got too cold, he would swich with the other. It didn't heat them, but at least kept them from becoming rigid again. He tried to feel the other freezing parts of his body without much success.

He closed his eyes wishing Rodney could fix this damn life support soon.

Beside him, Rodney was heating his hands too and wore a deep frown on his face. He narrowed his eyes when his hands started shaking too hard, trying to make them stop, but he gave up after a few seconds and heated them with his breath. John tried not to worry about the bloodied cut, now hidden under a bandage. It was not so deep, but he thought it very strange not hearing that much complaining from the scientist.

Ronon was rubbing his hands into Teyla's. The Athosian was now completely covered by her blanket, kept in place and warm by the former runner. From all of them, Ronon was the one that showed less signs of freezing. The Satedan had the most amazing stamina and resistance John had ever seen, but still shook a little.

Another hour passed until Rodney gave a yell of victory.

"Hah!" Rodney took his pad and started typing into it. "I did it! We are not going to freeze to death anymore!" He seemed surprised and relieved. "I can't believe we are actually going to survive the night!" He took an energy bar from his pocket and gave it a generous bite.

"Bout time. I was beginning to doubt your _amazing repair skills_." Sheppard couldn't help but smile. "How long until it's warm again?"

"Not long, but it will still be a little cool. I'm trying to conserve the power until we are rescued." Rodney had the satisfied face he only wore when he was fed.

"Good work, Rodney." John smiled, allowing himself to relax.

**…**

* * *

TBC…


	3. Chapter 3 What Went Wrong This Time?

_A/N: I decided to be nice to the people waiting for shep whump and posted two chapters. This one is a flashback from what happened before they crashed._

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_**Chapter 3 – What Went Wrong This Time?**_

All four craddled together the whole night waiting for day light, which came with a relief.

The rear hatch opened letting the brightness enter the jumper. They all closed their eyes tearing with the light. After they got used to it though, it wasn't that bright. The sky was very blue, and the sun shone very small half covered by another moon. The air was thin, and they all felt themselves taking deep breaths as if they were in a very high altitude. The weather was cool and a light breeze hit their faces.

Teyla let herself out into the light trying to ignore the sudden pain in her right arm. It didn't feel so bad now and she refrained herself from the painkillers. She walked around the ship following Rodney that was examining the damage on the hull, letting the fingers of her left hand slip over the ship. She looked down observing his footprints on the red sand absorbed in her own thoughts.

**…**

_Eight Hours Earlier _

Teyla and Ronon were geared up and ready waiting on the Jumper Bay. He had said something to her and she was laughing. Not that he had intended to be funny, but the way he said it amused her.

At that moment John entered the bay and went straight to the ship, smiling and shaking his head. He looked back yelling at Rodney that was pacing to catch up with him and speaking into his headset.

"C'mon Rodney! Zelenka will be fine!"

All of them entered the puddle jumper and headed for their seats. As the rear hatch closed, the Colonel activated the controls and they flew in direction of the large panel in the middle of the floor. It opened and they descended into the platform before the active stargate.

Dr. Weir's voice came from the comm wishing them good luck and they entered the event horizon.

They emerged at a space gate orbiting a gas giant. It was the biggest planet Teyla had ever seen with over sixty moons orbiting it, looking like a mini solar system all by themselves. Rodney was now explaining how it looks like a planet on Earth's Solar System called Jupiter.

"It doesn't have a defined surface. It's only a lot of gases like helium and hydrogen in a colossal volume, though it doesn't have that much mass. It's one thousand times bigger than the planet Atlantis is based on." He smiled pointing his finger at the giant figure at the window.

"Impressive," she responded the scientists explanation. "I did not know a planet so big could exist."

"Yes, it's really amazing. Right now we are going to one of the many moons orbiting it. The Zoal Moons, the Atlantis database called them." Rodney always looked satisfied when explaining things to Teyla and she always paid attention to him.

From space the moon they were heading didn't look like a moon at all. It looked like an ordinary planet, like the many they had visited during their missions. It had forests, seas, oceans, rivers and cities. Big cities, indicating that the moon was heavily populated.

As they approached orbit, Rodney advised them to cloak the jumper.

"Why?" the Colonel asked.

"I'm picking up a strange reading coming from the surface. Energy readings. Hmm…" He had an intrigued look. "It could be from some kind of weapon, like planetary defenses."

"Planetary defenses?" John's eyes brightened.

"I'm not sure, but better safe than sorry."

They landed close to one of the readings that Rodney picked up. It was located in a big city, and the colonel felt it was better for them to land on a rooftop of one of the five story buildings. They came down the stairs to a quiet side street where several other sets of stairs and a few ladders came from the other brick constructions.

Rodney pointed to a building that looked empty from the conditions of the walls and the broken windows. John peaked inside trough a broken glass using the light of his P-90 to illuminate the dark place. She followed the same motion.

There was really nothing inside except dust, dirt and spider webs. She observed a side door that exited to an alley.

"There is an entrance there." She looked from her friends to the alley motioning her weapon.

The alley was as dark and abandoned as the old storage area they wanted to go.

"I don't think that is such a good idea." Rodney was motionless looking at the close and dirty space.

"What could go wrong, Rodney? It's only an alley!" John turned to face the frozen scientist. "C'mon!" He turned and continued his path towards the door.

"Am I the only one who thinks this is trespassing?" Rodney whispered out loud rushing into them.

Suddenly they all froze in place tuning their senses. She heard something, and was sure the others heard as well.

"What?" Rodney whispered beside her.

At that exact moment, dozens of armed soldiers appeared from all windows pointing their weapons. They all raised theirs in return, except for Rodney, who raised his hands in surrender.

"Hey guys." Sheppard said friendlily.

"Lower you weapons immediately or we _will_ open fire!" one of the men, probably the leader, said in a very unfriendly tone.

It was a tense and hostile situation, but she kept her P-90 drawn watching for John's reaction. He hesitated for a moment, but realizing that those soldiers must really be serious, he looked back at the team, nodding. He meant to say for them to lower the guns, but apparently the soldiers got the opposite meaning. Before anyone could say a word, everything went wrong.

As soon as the first bullet crossed the air, everything happened in slow motion. They ducked and run behind some trash cans very close to their position. That's when she was shot. A grazing bullet wound to her right arm burned trough her skin and she gasped in pain. It crossed her muscle and left on the other side.

She tried to focus on her surroundings and remain clear headed as she heard the shouting coming from behind her. They were being called rebels and traitors of the Zoal Empire.

She was on one knee, keeping her head down when Ronon grabber her left arm guiding her out of the alley while John gave cover fire.

They run up the stairs and she fell once, being pushed by the big Satedan all the way up. Bullets kept ricocheting the metal handle and broke several windows sending a rain of glass over her side that she blocked with her injured arm.

The red light from Ronon's gun crossed the air towards his target in the street bellow several times. She wanted to pull her weapon to help, but every time she moved her arm, a sharp pain made her stop.

She crashed into her seat with all others coming behind her. The jumper lit on and a blast was heard on the side of the ship as they flew away.

**…**

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TBC...


	4. Chapter 4 The Falloff

_A/N: The shep whump begins. I hope you like it.  
_

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_**Chapter 4 – The Falloff**_

"Well… no evident structural damage." Rodney continued his examination of the jumper and stopped after a minute. "Except for this." He pointed to the thruster pod that was partially open.

He knelt close to it and tried to put his head to see inside, but the space was too small.

"Lamp please!" He held out his hand behind his back while still looking inside and waved a few times until John gave it to him, rolling his eyes.

He was fully emerged in his task, not realizing John trying to peak over his shoulder.

A few minutes passed until anyone said anything.

"So… should we wait for rescue, or you're gonna get us outa here?" John asked challenging his friend.

The response came in an unintelligible mumble.

"I don't understand mumble and I don't read minds, Rodney."

Rodney faced the Colonel rolling his eyes and took the lamp out of his mouth. "I said probably not." Then went back to work, still muttering something through his teeth.

John sighed loudly. John decided to just trust his friend to do what he does best and got up, looking at the landscape.

Ronon was scouting their surroundings with Teyla close by, always watching over her. John went to the opposite side putting on his sun glasses and carrying his P-90. He figured the gun wasn't really necessary, since Rodney said they were on a deserted moon, but he always felt somehow safer with it, rather than without it.

The plateau was almost circular, and had close to one kilometer in diameter. The northern part, covered by Ronon and Teyla, had cliffs going down from ten to fifteen meters high, and the southern part was surrounded with mountains and high peaks. He approached a steep and very high mountain looking up and started circling it.

He stopped by a shaded area by the mountain and looked back at the jumper, removing the sunglasses. There was nothing new about a mountain, but there wasn't really anything to do back at the jumper except hear Rodney drabble and complain about one problem or another.

As he paced further, he felt like he had taken a bad step, stumbled and started falling. Except that the descend felt longer that it should be. He saw himself surrounded by dark, confused as he kept falling.

He hit a sudden wall and started sliding down on his back. His shirt got slashed and the narrow space kept shrinking scratching his arms and legs that were now burning and filled with abrasions. He felt like he would continue falling for an eternity crying out each time a sharp rock split his skin, cutting deeper as he got nearer to the center of the mountain.

Finally he hit the solid ground in a blasting impact that sent waves of pain throughout his body and passed out.

**…**

John woke up abruptly and saw himself enclosed in darkness, trying to figure out what had just happened.

He started getting up just to feel every muscle on his body faltering in pain. He gave himself a moment before trying again. He shut his eyes, squeezing all his strength to sit up shaking roughly.

He took a deep breath manning his weapon to use its light to illuminate the area. He was in a cave and in the middle of a long corridor. His jacket and BDUs were ripped and his arms and legs were covered in lacerations, cuts, blood and dirt, stinging at every move.

He looked up and saw the hole from which he fell. It was a long slope that didn't allow any light from the surface to come down and there was no way he could climb up. He tried to use his radio, but it didn't work under the mountain.

He gathered his strength disregarding the refusal of his body determined to stand up and turned, trying to get his bearings. He didn't recall any turns during the fall, so he supposed that he was facing north now and started walking.

He heard a dripping sound coming from up ahead and paced slowly and painfully attempting to see where it came from, vacillating before proceeding, but doing so anyway, keeping himself from flinching at each move.

The corridor widened briefly before returning to its original shape. In the wide space a small pond lay close to a dripping rocky wall and a tiny stream came running parallel to the corridor.

He knelt close to the clean and clear water, took out his vest, jacket and shirt shuddering slightly and used the canteen to wash his wounds. He knew he had to remove the dirt from the abrasions and cuts to avoid infection, but he hesitated before doing so.

He grimaced in anticipation and groaned when the water hit the exposed flesh removing the grains and gravel from the wounds. Shaking, he cleaned himself taking off the rough parts carved inside the injuries.

He filled the canteen again with the water from the pond and continued cleaning himself. The water was freezing and he flinched as the numerous cuts stung and a wave of shock shot across his body.

When he finished, he was breathing heavily, trembling and felling cold.

He dried himself gently with his black shirt, fighting the dizziness that took over and rested for a moment before proceeding into the dark corridor.

**…**

Rodney got out from the cockpit and laid flat on the cargo hold, working on the power distribution system. Now that he found out what was wrong with it, he could try to get a few controls operational without having to replace all circuit paths. It wouldn't be enough to fly out because the thruster was damaged in the crash, but he could try to send a distress signal to be picked up by the search teams.

"Where is Sheppard?" Ronon's voice startled him.

"I thought he was out there with you." Rodney looked up to the big man standing beside him.

Ronon left the ship and looked around then he tapped his headset calling for Sheppard, but got only static in return.

"It's not working," Ronon said looking back inside the jumper.

"What do you mean it's not working?" Rodney got up heading outside annoyed. He tapped his earpiece twice and got the same response. He took out Ronon's headset without asking and tested it alongside with his own. "These are not working," he said surprised. "They should be…"

There was a brief pause as his brain raced. Soon his face dimmed with a thought.

"What is it Rodney?" Teyla asked imitating his worried look.

"Jamming! That must be it. Oh God, why didn't I see this before? There must be some kind of interference in here. We are never going to get out of here…" Rodney was almost crying with disappointment.

Ronon and Teyla shot blank looks into the scientist. Rodney rolled his eyes.

"Look, I can't fix the jumpers engines, and, even if I could, we wouldn't have nearly enough power to make it out of the atmosphere. Our only hope was to send a distress signal to be picked up when they came looking for us, but that's _not_ going to happen because there is some kind of interference going on here. They are not even going to pick up our transmitters. And there is no reason for them to land in this godforsaken piece of rock and find us!"

They were in real trouble. He told Sheppard not to go into the bad dark alley, but does he listen to him? They had to go in and get into some nasty soldiers of the stupid empire. They were shot without any good reason and abandoned to die. A very slow and painful death as they either starved or froze to death.

He sat on the desert sand whishing he could just go back to Atlantis, to safety, where he could trouble himself with science problems without worrying about death lurking at every corner of the galaxy.

"Dr. Weir would never stop searching for us. She will check every single moon in the system if she has to, until she finds us. I know Lorne will feel the same way, as everyone in Atlantis." Teyla said kneeling beside him.

Rodney felt Teyla's hand over his shoulder as he heard her words of comfort.

"And we have to find the Colonel," she continued.

Finding Sheppard. That was number one on the priority list. Rodney got up.

"Let's go find him," he said.

"I think he may have gone that way." Ronon pointed towards some mountains and started walking.

They headed south and circled the mountains observing it carefully. They shouted his name a few times, but heard no response.

Rodney walked ahead looking up and far. He lost his balance and nearly fell wasn't for Ronon grabbing his arm. He glanced down and saw crack on the ground so deep, he couldn't even see the bottom. He looked up at the Satedan scared.

"Thanks," he hissed looking back down.

"Look what I found," Teyla spoke showing a pair of sunglasses she took from the ground.

At the moment they saw the object in her hands they all looked down at the crack in unison thinking the same thing.

**…**

* * *

TBC…


	5. Chapter 5 Wandering Darkness

* * *

_**Chapter 5 – Wandering Darkness**_

John had been walking for an hour without seeing any change on the scenery around him. The tunnel made a few curves and turns but continued further and further.

He winced at every step he took feeling his legs burning. He wasn't wearing his shirt or jacket because it scratched all the flesh and loose skin on his arms. He was dragging them on one hand, and holding the P90 on another, hesitating before taking every footstep. He breathed heavily, trembling with cold, squeezing his eyes trying to summon his strength into proceeding forward. Each move of his trembling muscles made it more difficult for him to resist the terrible urge to drop to his knees and simply wait for rescue.

The passageway divided into two corridors and he stopped there, considering his options, taking his time to recover his breath. Both ways were the same as the one he was following now, but he imagined the right path would take him to the basic direction he was trying to go.

Soon, he saw a space opening up like a hall on the side of the corridor twenty meters wide and a wrecked rectangular table at the center. It was covered in dust and rubble and had broken pieces and parts thrown all over the floor.

He examined the room closer going over the fallen objects. They looked like equipment of some type, but the stuff was so old and ruined that was hard to tell what, or even who's technology it was. He went over the larger parts and halted as he saw something in the corner.

He painfully walked to that direction, going around the debris on the ground. He saw a dead body collapsed on the floor and turned it in shock as he realized what it was: a wraith. It was bent and distorted; several broken limbs revealed that was killed violently. Whatever killed it did a hell of a job and he wasn't eager to find out what it was.

John stood there recovering from the tiredness that consumed him, trying to think about the issue in a futile attempt to forget about the pain of his body. He wondered what a wraith would be doing down in a mountain on some forgotten desert moon. Experiment was his only answer. The table and weird equipment would support that theory that became almost a fact when he saw some broken cages in shards at the opposite side.

There wasn't anything left standing in the hall. Maybe whatever subject that was being used escaped, killing its tormentor and destroying the lab. He shuddered at the thought and considered the idea of not being alone down there, remembering Rodney's words: _We'll be fine until rescue come for us; there are no life signs there._

**…**

"Where is that going to lead?" Ronon was pointing to the crack on the ground.

"How am I supposed to know?" Rodney snapped at him.

"You are the smart one," he answered back.

"As amazing as it may sound, I don't know everything!" Rodney snarked in reply, kneeling over the edge of the hole. "I can't see anything; I forgot my lamp back at the jumper!" He looked at Teyla.

"Here, you can use mine," she said.

"Thanks." He looked down again. "Hmmm… doesn't look like an animal's hole. It's deep, then slides down out of sight," he said hearing the echoes of his own voice. "By the looks of this plateau there could be an entire network of caves under us." He looked around the landscape.

"How do we find him?" Ronon followed his gaze.

"If we find the entrance, it would be a true miracle to find him, that place is probably a maze."

"We'll look for the entrance, then. John is probably injured from the fall and needs our help," Teyla said.

She quickly got the approval from her Satedan friend and looked at Rodney.

"Okay, then. I'll go to the jumper, see if I can track down these caves using the hand sensor." Rodney got up and went back to the ship, leaving Ronon and Teyla scouting the mountains and cliffs.

He sat down at the edge of the ramp and quickly set up a hand sensor connected to his laptop. The images appeared on the screen, but they were distorted with interference.

"Oh, great…" he muttered typing more commands into the computer.

The image cleared for a few short moments until he was able to partially overcome the interference. It was far from being high-definition, but he theorized it would be better once they were down at the caves, where the signal wouldn't have to penetrate so much rock. The screen kept fading in and out, but he was able to identify some tunnels a few meters underneath the surface.

"Okay. We are in business," He clapped his hands together.

He got up holding the laptop on one hand and the sensor on the other and started walking in the direction of the cliffs looking at the screen. The images kept changing, becoming clearer a few moments at a time. He walked around the edge of the cliffs looking for a way down.

Looking ahead he saw the slope that was formed at the end of the mountains and started climbing down followed by Teyla and Ronon. The ground was covered in gravel and Rodney was having trouble keeping his balance while having both hands occupied, until he finally started to slide down on both feet and crashed, coming the whole way down on his butt.

"It's _not_ funny!" he remarked hearing the giggling coming from above.

He was still holding both objects on his hands and remained there grumpy until Ronon gave him his arm to help him up.

"That's just what I needed!" He said feeling the pain coming from his behind. "Please tell me there isn't a hole back there."

He was trying to look at his pants but couldn't see anything.

"No, Rodney, there isn't." Teyla was trying to restrain herself from giggling.

"Oh, Thank God!"

After that relieved comment, Rodney continued tracking the caves following the rocky wall beside the group. Shortly afterwards they reached the entrance to the dark tunnel.

**…**

The discovery that John made in the wraith laboratory had made him alert and concerned enough to get up again and continue his way. He didn't know why getting out of that place felt so urgent, wondering if maybe he was overreacting due to his weariness and injuries. But he just longed for sun light and for the backup of his team.

He didn't want to spend any more minute in that unknown environment, living every second simply to give another footstep, and another, and another. Pain shooting each time he had to do so.

He ignored the screaming legs that weakened at each pace, the tired arms that refused to continue illuminating his way and his drained mind that made clear the need for rest.

He tripped and fell to the ground, wavering. He put the jacket back on ignoring the shock that his arms send to his brain, wishing the holes in it didn't exist, in order to keep the warmth that came with the strenuous exercise he had practiced. He rested for less than a minute before he forced himself to get up and go foward.

**…**

They proceeded slowly in the three hours since they had entered the caves. Ronon was taking point and Teyla was at their six.

The tunnel was very long, taking turns and making numerous curves, but rarely separating. When it did, they had two alternatives that merged ahead. Rodney's map showed the way that looked like something made by an earthworm.

The underground was cold and Teyla's arm was bothering her again. She held her weapon with her left hand, breathing in and out slowly to keep her mind from the throbbing wound and tired body. If she concentrated enough in her task she could almost forget about the pain. She observed Rodney rubbing his arm and head more then one time, trying not to worry about the bandage under his hair line.

She continued going along with her team mates to find their missing friend. If the crack John had fallen was as deep as it appeared to be, them he would be injured and in need of assistance.

They reached a wide circular room. Their light showed several units in the walls. She got close to one of them, already knowing what they were. The others observed attentive as well.

"These are wraith cocoons," Rodney remarked with a terrified look.

"They are empty." Teyla went from one case to another. "Why would the wraith have cocoons here?"

"They were cut free." Ronon observed the remains of a cocoon cut from inside.

Teyla thought of the other times they had encountered wraith facilities on other planets. It was never something good. They were evil creatures and the results were disastrous every time.

They counted 50 cocoons spread over the walls of the room. All empty and cut free. It looked like the wraiths had been unsuccessful in keeping their captives. She smiled.

Suddenly she heard a roaring voice and soon other voices joined. All yelling a primitive call coming from the corridor ahead. They all raised their weapons listening attentive as the cries increased shortly before fading out into the distance.

**…**

John frooze with sudden the sound of a thunder that soon became a piercing roar of several voices approaching.

The voices grew and his heartbeat accelerated. He felt the pulse of the artery inside his ears as his apprehension grew in the same rate as the roaring sound. His instincts yelled for him to run, but his legs refused to move any faster than a walk.

With lightning speed he saw a big man jumping towards him taking him to the ground. The man started attacking John with crushing fists hitting his chest and face. As he cried out in pain, he struggled to get free without success. His weapon was locked under the heavy weight and he struggled to block the attacks.

He raised his hands and protected his head as other fists joined the first pair, unable to see how many they were. He felt defenseless, hearing cracks and slashes as bruises formed on his body. He felt a heavy impact against his skull and everything blacked out.

**…**

* * *

TBC…


	6. Chapter 6 Natives

_A/N: Warning: disgusting scene ahead. Putrid carcasses._

* * *

_**Chapter 6 – Natives**_

John found himself being carried away by a strong pair of arms. He kept his eyes shut, trying to resist the impulse that nausea brought him, fighting to stay conscious. His arm fell to the side letting a stream blood run down dropping through his finger. In the end, the darkness that enveloped him was too appealing and he lost his battle for consciousness.

**...**

Teyla, Rodney and Ronon followed the noise they had heard earlier, walking quickly through the tunnel. Rodney paced and heard the distant sound that increased, until became a loud war cry. Teyla and Ronon took point and Rodney tightened his grip on his weapon, pointing it in all directions and keeping closely behind his two companions.

His adrenaline ran fast as silence came. They followed ahead, Rodney still blind to any life signs.

They halted when Ronon saw something on the ground. The Satedan knelt next to a black mark on the ground and showed his discovery.

Rodney's blood froze as he saw the red stain on Ronon's finger and the site where a struggle obviously took place. There was a small collection of blood drops that continued through the course of the corridor.

**…**

John heard voices, lots of them talking all together in one indistinct ramble and felt his head aching like it was ready to explode. He also smelled something rotting, a sickening smell unlike that wasn't helping his nausea. He swallowed the bile that rose from his stomach keeping his breathing shallow through his mouth.

He decided to open his eyes, sure that he would regret it.

And he was right.

He found himself on top of a huge pile of skeletons, carcasses and putrid remains of animals that looked like lizards.

He held his breath revolted with the stench swallowing hard numerous times trying to keep his stomach content inside.

The smell was consuming the environment, so John decided to get out of there as fast as he could, before his guts turned upside down.

He begun getting up sensing his body stubbornness into obeying his brain and the protest of his ribs. He gasped in pain, breathing heavily trying to show his body that he could be equally as stubborn.

He wore a deep frown and felt his lungs on fire each time he took another breath. His ribs were sending waves of pain across his chest. His arms and legs were still stinging and burning, now even worse than before, because he also had to add several bruises and contusions to the list.

He got himself into big trouble again. He really should start looking to where he's going from now on and skip the big holes on the ground. Or better, he should avoid encounters with violent prone natives and crash landings on falsely deserted moons.

_What the hell were those men anyway?_ He didn't get a good look at them, being to busy being beaten like a punching bag, but he was sure that they looked human, but fierce and brutal. They didn't say a word to him, any excuse to why they were crushing him down or why they dumped him there. _And what relation do these people have with the wraith lab?_

He shrugged pushing this thoughts aside to focus on the important matter at the moment: survival. He had to leave this place and run away from these crazies.

He closed his eyes to push the agonizing pain from his ribcage wishing for him being to lay down again and predicted that the rest of the team must be worried by now.

He slid to the side and got to his feet wincing at the protest of his legs. He climbed down, one step at a time, cautiously choosing his next footing. He balanced himself avoiding the thought of diving into the pool of animal remains. He swallowed a few more times holding his breath for as long as he could until he finally hit the solid ground with the whole world spinning around him.

He didn't look back and simply put himself into walking into the dark corridor silently and carefully, listening the voices that came from ahead. He really wished that there could be another way to leave the filthy room, but it only led to this tunnel, and straight to the voices.

He kept a grimace of silence which only made his vision blur with pain.

As he approached he saw a faint light illuminating the way ahead that came from another room on the right side. He knelt by the wall next to the doorway and peeked inside happy to find everyone busy around a fire. He crossed the opening holding his breath in nervousness and released it when he got to the other side.

He didn't have his P90 anymore, but his sidearm was still with him. It didn't provide light, but he still held it tightly within his grip, while he used the other hand for support, feeling the wall's presence, blind to everything in front of him. He only had to find his way out now.

**…**

Rodney still followed his two companions tracking down the drops of blood. As they moved forward, the drops came more scarcely until there was nothing more to follow. But they continued anyway.

The thought of what could possibly have happened to Sheppard made him shudder. Those growls that they heard could have done something to him, which was probably already wounded from the fall he had suffered.

Every time they took a turn Rodney imagined seeing him laying on the ground bloodied and injured, possibly dead, with monsters dismembering him for food. They quickly turned to kill them before anyone could react.

They all halted before a group of tunnels that went each to a different direction.

"What now?" Rodney whispered confused.

"That way." Ronon replied.

Rodney didn't reply. _The big guy must know what he's doing._ He assured himself. Ronon lived alone running away from the wraith for seven years, and was able to survive in every kind of environment and all circumstances.

They continued following the corridor and Rodney felt like they were walking right into unfriendly territory. The ground was beaten and seemed like it was frequently used and the walls had several claw marks and small holes next to the floor probably made by animals.

He froze in place hearing a noise coming from the wall. He looked down and saw a lizard like creature running from one hole to another.

It scared him the fact that the only thing that they could rely was their senses, or rather, Ronon's and Teyla's. And that he was feeling very helpless in assisting then in any form. He just continued mapping their way, so he could perhaps provide with the escape route once the inevitable happened.

They were getting somewhere, because now he heard low voices speaking together in a whisper. As they continued to move, his adrenaline rose, and his breathing became harder. They continued, weapons drawn and moving swiftly trough the darkness.

He let himself drag behind, afraid that he was too noisy compared to the two offworlders, and that he would draw attention to their position. He held his breath each time a louder noise was heard and was sweating hard in anticipation.

This entire stressful situation made his blood pressure rise and the throbbing on his head returned. He was unsuccessful in taking the frown away from his face to ease the pain on the cut under his hairline, and his arm was aching with having to carry the laptop close to his face to be able to see the images.

He was walking slowly following the light that were Ronon and Teyla getting smaller by the minute, until it faded behind a corner. He saw himself enclosed in darkness, hyperventilating trying to get hold of his own lamp inside his vest and almost dropping the laptop in the process.

He lit his way back towards his two friends, using the loud murmur of the crowd ahead to mask his hurried pace.

He caught up to them with lungs burning in anxiety and saw the two faces looking back at him. They motioned him to turn the light out, turning to show the dim illumination coming from ahead.

His face showed exactly what a bad and stupid idea he thought this was, but he turned the lamp out anyway and hid the laptop in his backpack.

He stayed as close as he could to them holding his gun firmly with both hands unsteadily.

There was another turn that led to a small room from where the light was coming. They halted before entering, listening to a group talking. It seemed like there were five people talking at once.

Glued to the wall, he waited until Teyla looked back at him assuring him to follow. He trusted in her gaze, and slid by the surface, too afraid to do anything else. When the wall was over, he almost fell inside the room and saw Ronon and Teyla already inside staring at the six figures sitting around a fire, now in silence staring back at them.

The figures were human, and he let a breath out in relief they weren't alien monsters. But he was still wary with their looks. Dressed in animal skin of the strange lizard he saw previously, well cared appearance, clean, but with a wild glare behind their eyes.

They all got up at once snarling with clenched teeth, going to battle stance and flying into their direction. They were so fast that both Ronon and Teyla didn't have time to fire their guns and were tossed into the ground.

**…**

* * *

TBC...


	7. Chapter 7 Reunion

_**Chapter 7 – Reunion**_

Rodney watched the scene in horror, trying to react beyond his shock and slowness. He aimed the weapon, fired and missed, getting ready to be tossed down as well. But it didn't happen.

The roaring stopped and the wild men watched his shaky hands with scared looks. Their hesitation lasted only one second, but it was enough to have both warriors of his team overpowering the ones on their tops.

As the others moved to continue the attack, Rodney fired again, and kept them frozen in place. Teyla and Ronon got up and stood beside him, watching suspiciously for any move coming from the six people still immobile.

The wild glare disappeared and the natives of the caves stepped back and run away, leaving the three Atlantians staring at nothing.

**…**

John followed his way into the darkness. The voices he left behind were fading into the distance and he felt the utter loneliness that only complete darkness could provide.

He pushed his fear aside bringing to his mind hopes that his team would find him, that Atlantis would send a rescue that would easily track him down through his transmitter. But until then, all he could do was keep going.

There never were a lot of options to follow, and usually everything resumed to a long black corridor that made a lot of turns and curves. He breathed harder every time he had to make a turn, waiting for something to jump at him again and finish the job.

John kept his ears alert at the fading sounds, to make sure they weren't coming after him. And so far they weren't. Until, when focusing on them, he heard a loud bang that he immediately recognized. It was a fire weapon. Sounding awfully familiar.

He halted his pace and turned back, paying attention on the voices that silenced completely. Then there were more shots.

John started his way back trotting hurriedly, biting his lip and grimacing with tiredness and pain. He heard paces running towards him, getting closer and ducked by the wall behind a curve. He swallowed the metallic taste on his mouth, holding himself back against the wall so hard that he could be inside of it. The running paces passed right through him and he let go a relieved breath, sitting on the floor.

He took a few more breaths in before getting up releasing a quiet cry of pain and continued in the direction of the shots. As he turned another curve he heard a familiar voice speaking and let out a smile.

John walked, always holding the wall. He entered into the soft light of the fireplace, revealing himself to the three pleased people inside the room, covering his eyes with a hand until he adjusted to the light.

They got closer to him smiling and relieved to find him alive.

"John!" Teyla let out an exasperated sigh.

"Oh my God! You smell!" Rodney made a disgusted face and stepped back, turning his head away.

"I'm sorry for being tossed over a huge pile of carcasses like a dead corpse, Rodney!" John said trying to sound better than he actually felt. "Next time I'll just come out and tell them that I haven't died yet."

That remark gained a smile from Ronon that moved to give him a bear hug which John quickly evaded waving a hand and giving a step back, almost loosing his balance and falling to the ground. It was Teyla that held him.

He looked at her to thank and saw her worried look. He let go off her embrace.

"Are you okay, Colonel?" she asked.

"I'll be as soon as I get the hell out of here." He tried not to show weakness on his voice and was almost sure he failed.

They started moving out of the room when they heard another loud roar, just like the one they heard earlier but greater this time.

A lot greater.

John bit his lower lip.

"We'd better move." he said, hurrying the others into movement.

They all followed Rodney that led the way out, using the map on his screen. He tried to keep up his pace, breathing heavily, feeling his body weakening at each footstep, failing and tumbling at the wall.

Teyla grabbed him under his arm so gently he barely felt her touch behind all the agonizing pain on his chest and muscles and she led him away. John closed his eyes swallowing the metallic taste in his mouth. His stomach revolted again, his head was spinning and he felt cold sweats running down his frown. His vision blurred, and his legs felt like butter as he pushed harder forward leaning more of his weight on her, almost bringing both of them down.

He fell to his knees unable to continue moving. He started falling forward and was grabbed by a strong pair of hands, he acknowledged as Ronon's before blacking out.

**…**

They ran fast through the corridor and Ronon came last carrying Sheppard. Soon, he caught up with the scientist and kept beside him.

After a few minutes Rodney stopped gasping for air with hands on his knees. Ronon halted too, breathing heavily. The voices were no longer after them. He decided to place his burden gently on the ground to access his injuries.

The Colonel had several cuts on his arms and legs, hidden under the rips on his clothes. He couldn't tell the severity or extend of his injuries because of all the blood covering them.

Teyla opened his vest and jacket to reveal a chest covered with bruises and lacerations. She softly felt his chest and stopped when she felt a softer spot. She put her hand on his forehead lifting his wet hair. His skin was clammy and warm. Teyla looked up at Ronon with a worried expression that the former runner imitated.

"He needs medical attention," she said.

Ronon proceeded to carry the leader of the team treating him as if he was fine china.

Several hours passed until they met sunlight again. The sky was covered in red and orange and the sun was setting on the horizon. They entered the jumper just as the sky turned black.

Rodney started the CO2 recycling and the life support, Ronon placed John over the bench on the rear compartment and Teyla took the first aid kit to take care of his injuries. She cleaned his cuts, dressed his wounds, applied antibiotics and painkillers, and followed every lesson given by Carson for situations like this. When she finished she sat down exhausted and closed her eyes praying for the ancestors.

**…**

John woke up slowly, seeing the rush of images of what happened at the cave. He expected to find himself on the infirmary by now, but wasn't overwhelmed by the sensations, smells and noise familiar to that place. He opened his eyes just to find himself inside the crashed jumper.

He saw some stir behind him and soon saw the worried figure looking down at him. She looked tired and had two big shadows under her eyes. Teyla smiled faintly at him and he tried to return it.

"How are you, John?"

John tried to respond, but found his throat closed and dry and started coughing. The muscles of his chest and his ribcage sent a wave of pain with every choke he gave and didn't stop until Teyla gave him some water to drink. The effort had him breathless. He felt like crap.

"I'm good." John pulled himself together.

"I'm sorry that the pain medication that we have is not sufficient."

"Don't worry, Teyla." Every time John spoke, his chest protested with a sharp pain. His voice was weak and he almost laughed with his feeble struggle to make it better.

"Sheppard." Ronon appeared beside him.

"What's our condition?" John went back to team leader mode.

"Rodney said that we cannot fly out and that the moon has interference that does not allow communications or life signs detection." Teyla narrowed her eyes as she remembered the exact words of the physicist.

That wasn't good. Without communications, the rescue team wouldn't pick up their transmitter signals. It would take time to them to look at each moon orbiting the gas giant and they wouldn't have a reason to land and look for them here. He guessed it would be time for Rodney to share the little bit of information he kept to himself in case all their chances of surviving failed and a miraculous escape was needed. The one he always said it wouldn't work, but always ended up working.

"Where's Rodney?"

"He wouldn't stop talking, so I shut him up." Ronon stepped aside to reveal the man laying on the other bench.

John looked at Ronon suspiciously.

"He got tired after so much rambling about our hopeless fate and fell asleep." The Satedan explained. "McKay!" Ronon shook the scientist.

Rodney moaned, turned his head and snapped.

"What?" he shouted with his eyes still closed.

"Sheppard woke up," Ronon said.

Rodney jumped up in an instant and stood beside John.

"Hey! How are you doing?" he spoke a little softer than normal.

"I'm fine, just tell me what's your plan to get us out of here," John replied.

"I'm sorry for worrying about my friend that had disappeared and found injured!" Rodney shouted.

"I'm touched for your concern. Now, what's the plan?"

"What plan? There is no plan! We are stuck here!" Rodney waved his hands widely to both sides.

John eyed the physicist.

Rodney crossed his arms in front of his chest and stared back at John. "It's a long shot at best," Rodney finally said.

John continued to stare at the scientist with the beginning of a smirk.

"I could _try_ to strengthen our distress signal to _try_ to have it past the interference, but there is no guarantee it will make it to orbit, or even if we have enough energy."

**…**

* * *

TBC…


	8. Chapter 8 Return

_A/N: Last chapter finally. Many thanks for all that had the patience to read and review and all the supporters from GW._

* * *

_**Chapter 8 – Return**_

"Major Lorne." Dr. Weir stood on the doorway of her office with her arms across her chest.

"Dr. Weir." Lorne was geared up and ready to leave for an offworld mission and was curious to know why it was canceled.

"Colonel Sheppard is three hours late for the check up. I want you to go check it out." She looked down and took a breath then looked back at him. "It would be best for you to take Dr. Zelenka and Dr. Beckett with you just in case, the space gate is a few minutes away from the moon and if they are in trouble there may not be time to come back, they will be waiting on the jumper bay."

"Yes ma'am." Lorne turned on his heels and left for the gate room, where his team still waited.

**…**

"I have good and bad news." Rodney spoke after a long period of silence.

"Okay…" John's curious look made the physicist continue.

"The good news is that I fixed the communications system so we can send a distress signal," he paused before continuing, "the bad news is that we don't have enough power to send it." He had a look on his face that made John wonder.

"What's the catch?"

"We can't keep the life support and the distress signal on at the same time." Rodney kept a serious expression.

They were still on the middle of the night and it was about the time Atlantis would send a rescue team. The first place that they would look for them would be the moon of their mission. As soon as they realize they are not there, they will start looking at the other moons. This is the closest one to the 'gate, and would probably be the second place they would go. They needed the signal working soon.

"Turn it off then," John said serious. It was his responsibility to keep them safe and he honestly thought this was the only option to be considered.

**…**

The jumper entered the orbit of the moon and Lorne started calling for his CO on the usual Atlantian frequency. There was no response so Zelenka started to look for the team's transmitter signals.

"Anything, doc?" Lorne asked glancing back at the Czech. Lorne continued to repeat the message on regular intervals, but still had no response.

"Nothing yet. I am however picking up an energy surge coming from the surface." He had an intrigued look.

"Well, what kind? Is it a treat?" Lorne turned his head to look at Zelenka.

"I don't know." The scientist continued to look down at his console. "But it is increasing exponentially."

"I'm cloaking the jumper." The pilot retuned to his position and commanded the ship that promptly obeyed.

"The readings are decreasing." Zelenka said after a few seconds. "They could be weapons."

"Defense weapons?" Dr. Beckett asked.

"The kind of energy strongly suggests that." Zelenka answered with the Czech accent.

"Anything on those transmitters?" Lorne asked after several minutes.

"They are not down there."

"Do you think they could've been shot down?" Carson asked worriedly.

"If they were shot down we would pick up either debris or their signals coming from the surface, but there is nothing." Radek replied.

"They couldn't have simply disappeared." Lorne objected. "Maybe they are on another moon. Let's start checking. What's the closest one?"

"That one." Zelenka pointed to the HUD. "It has a breathable atmosphere."

The jumper broke orbit and arrived at the destination after a few minutes. It was a small red moon that resembled Mars.

"Nothing. No life signs down there." Radek looked disappointed. "Wait."

"What is it?" Lorne asked.

"I don't know. There is something coming in a low band but there is too much interference to understand anything." He cursed in czech.

"A distress call?" The Major looked at the scientist.

"That is very strange. Our sensors do not indicate any source of energy, but there is definitely something being sent from the surface. From there." He pointed at a region now blinking at the HUD. "I can't be more precise with this interference."

"We'll start sweeping that region." Lorne made the jumper descend into the atmosphere.

They ran low through the surface observing carefully on the front screen, the region was dark and they only had their eyes and the jumper lights to trust. Zelenka continued to work to try to determine a location by strengthening the sensors, but the numerous curses on his native language indicated he wasn't being very successful.

**…**

The air was freezing inside and the Sheppard's condition was far from good. They all sat on the bench of the cargo hold and carefully placed the injured man over them covering him with several blankets. Still it wasn't enough.

Sheppard was very pale and his lips were starting to turn blue. His eyes were closed, but Ronon was almost certain that the Colonel was awake.

Beside Ronon was Rodney, almost as pale as Sheppard and shaking violently. He was going to last little more than the Colonel. On the other end was Teyla and although she was also injured and looked very tired, still resisted bravely against the cold. She had lost some color to her features and her lips moved constantly, but she kept the same determined face caring for the man that had his head on her lap.

Ronon rested his head on the wall behind him thinking. He had stunned and tied John Sheppard the first time they met, but the man still tried to help him. At first he thought it was just a trick to escape, but time proved that he was wrong. He greatly admired him when Sheppard returned with the doctor just as he promised, and even more when he found himself at the city of the ancestors well cared by his people. It was the first time after seven years that he felt comfortable around strangers, without worrying about the wraith coming after him, about running away before doom fell above them. Sheppard even invited him to be on his team. Accepting that offer was the best thing he ever did and now he had a friend. A man that needed help he could not give at the moment. He grunted with the thought.

**…**

They had been scouting the surface for a good half an hour without success. The silence inside the ship was only broken by random curses from Radek as he failed in regulating sensors. Lorne looked ahead and saw a dark dot increasing as they approached it. The faces inside the jumper revealed the alarm of the discovery. It was a puddle jumper. Crashed.

He landed next to it and hurried outside. It was windy and very cold, several degrees below zero. Lorne called his CO, but heard no response. He banged on the window and cleaned the dirty from it peaking inside with the light from his P90. The door separating the compartment was closed. He circled the ship and opened the rear hatch with the command of his own ship.

As the ramp came down they all stared inside observing the three sitting figures under another lying over their laps, all asleep. The rescuers then entered the ship to take the team home.

**The End**


End file.
